DATE: June 2025
SECTOR: Conservation
SOURCE: The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Economic Research Service (ERS)
TOPIC: Adoption and economic impacts of soil health and conservation practices.
SUMMARY: A look at the challenges U.S. farmers are facing when making decisions about soil health practices, including new insights into how often these are adopted and their impact on crop agriculture profitability.
DESCRIPTION: Soil health and conservation practices, such as conservation tillage, cover cropping and nutrient management, can offer environmental benefits while improving long-term farm viability. However, the economic reasons behind farmers’ decisions to adopt these practices are complex. This new report,from USDA’s Economic Research Service, provides valuable context by examining how adoption of soil health and conservation practices varies across the U.S. and why this happens.
It highlights the challenges producers face in assessing the costs and benefits – which often differ depending on region, climate and production systems – and shares new information about the prevalence and profitability of these practices in U.S. crop agriculture.
Read a summary: A Summary of the Economic Outcomes of Soil Health and Conservation Practices on U.S. Cropland
Access the full report: Economic Outcomes of Soil Health and Conservation Practices on U.S. Cropland
